Swedes - Religion and Expressive Culture

Religious Beliefe.
At birth all Swedes automatically become members of the Lutheran
Protestant State Church, but they have the right to leave the church.
Ninety-two percent of the Swedish population belongs to it. The majority
of people do not go to church regularly, but most children are baptized
and confirmed, and most Swedes are married and buried by the church.
During the nineteenth century there were many pietistic movements
characterized by a puritan life-style. In the north of Sweden the
Laestadian movement is still vital. Swedish peasant society believed
that the landscape was crowded with various supernatural beings.

Religious Practitioners.
Shamans were part of the Saami religion and are considered prophets of
the Laestadian movement. Today the ministers of the Lutheran Protestant
State Church are both male and female.

Ceremonies.
There are not many religious ceremonies in contemporary Sweden.
Certainly some celebrations have a Religious origin—Advent,
Lucia, Christmas, Easter, and Whitsuntide—but only a minority of
the Swedes think of these celebrations as religious.

Arts.
Swedish folk art and handicrafts present many Regional variations
because of differences in the availability of raw materials. Straw
products were usual in Skåne, whereas birch-bark products were
common in Norrland. The Saami made, and still make, richly ornamented
knives and spoons from reindeer horn. In Dalecarlia human hair was used
to produce rings, necklaces, and brooches, which were sold all over
Sweden until 1925, when they went out of fashion. The traditional
Swedish textiles are wool and flax. A weaving technique used mainly in
south and western Sweden is
röllakan.
Dalecarlia is famous for its wall painting. Blacksmithing is another
handicraft with a long tradition. Folk art is noticeable in the modern
design of glassware, ceramics, woodwork, textiles, furniture, silver,
and stainless steel.

Medicine.
Traditional folk medicine made use of magical objects as well as
locally grown plants. As illness was often attributed to spirit
possession, various kinds of healing rituals were also used. These were
mainly readings, for example of charms, and various types of curing by
local healers' or priests' touch. Medical knowledge was
passed from one Generation to the next. During the nineteenth century,
several literate healers read official medical books. They picked up
fragments of information from these books, which they combined with
their traditional knowledge. Sometimes this led to conflicts between
local healers and district medical officers and sometimes to a division
of labor, with local healers often being respected for their ability to
cure allergies and various skin diseases.

Death and Afterlife.
Beliefs in a life after death certainly influenced the daily life in
preindustrial Sweden. Currently, such beliefs are not integrated into
everyday life but are privately held. The Tornedalians in the north
still practice a Funeral ritual, which in earlier days was common in
several areas. Immediately after the death the family, neighbors, and
close friends gather around the deceased, in his or her home, and
"sing him/her out." Two weeks after this ritual, the
Formal funeral takes place in the church.